


all burning.

by stardustgirl



Series: what should’ve been (& what was) [5]
Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy, Star Wars: Rebels
Genre: (at all), (but like), (it's barely mentioned), (lowkey) - Freeform, Aftermath of Torture, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe - Dark, Angst, But Ezra Bridger Doesn't, Canon Compliant, Canonical Character Death, Character Death, Child Death, Cut Off From The Force, Dead Ezra Bridger, Evil Snoke, First Order, Force Choking, Force Shenanigans, Force Visions, Force-Sensitive Jacen Syndulla, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, I wrote this instead of studying, I'm Bad At Tagging, Implied/Referenced Character Death, Jacen Syndulla Needs A Hug, Kanan Jarrus Lives, Kanan Jarrus Needs a Hug, Literally so much angst, Luke's Jedi Temple, Memory Alteration, Memory Loss, Minor Character Death, Near Death, Past Character Death, Please Don't Hate Me, Please Don't Kill Me, Pre-Canon, Pre-Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Presumed Dead, RIP Ezra Bridger, RIP Jacen Syndulla's Happiness, Rated For Violence, Rey Kenobi, Rey Needs A Hug, SO, Somebody Lives/Not Everyone Dies, Space Dad Kanan Jarrus, Tagging as I go, Technically Speaking, That's Not How The Force Works, The Author Regrets Everything, The Dark Side of the Force, The Force, There'll Be A Follow-up To This, Torture, When This Is All Over, Why Did I Write This?, Xenophobia, Young Ben Solo, please help, this is dark, very dark
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-19
Updated: 2018-12-24
Packaged: 2019-09-23 02:04:56
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 4,434
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17071403
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stardustgirl/pseuds/stardustgirl
Summary: Survival was in his parents' blood and now, he realizes, it's in his.But when the Force insists he has to get a particular girl out alive, then he will.  Or die trying.





	1. the one where they all die.

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [what should’ve been (& what was); s p e c t r e s .](https://archiveofourown.org/works/16846858) by [stardustgirl](https://archiveofourown.org/users/stardustgirl/pseuds/stardustgirl). 



> This stems from the Happy!Kanan (which I then angst-ified) AU that my friend helped me with (she provided happiness and I provided angst).
> 
> I apologize for everything.
> 
> This is going to be VERY dark. I'm sorry.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Luke’s gone, too.” His voice cracks and Jacen shifts uneasily, chills running down his spine again.
> 
> “Gone? What- what d’you mean, ‘gone?’”
> 
> “Dead.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Implied Child Death

The nudge is quiet, small, unobtrusive, but it’s enough to make him jolt awake.

Something is wrong.

There’s an unsettling tension in the air, and the Force is whisper-yelling to him to go, go,  _ go _ before he becomes a victim.

_ Of what? _

He gets his answer as the first trace of smoke reaches his nose.

He bolts upright, scrambling out of bed and calling to his lightsaber at the same time.  The hilt reaches his hand the same moment he’s slipping on his boots, not bothering to change out of his sleep robes as he approaches the door, tensing by the entrance.

It’s silent.

Unusually silent.

He slips out, tying his hair back with his hilt held loosely in his hand, and stands just outside the door.

The main building is up in flames.

He swallows and glances at the huts nearby.

Everything is deathly silent and the Force is still screaming wrong, wrong, wrong—

The realization comes suddenly.

He needs to get them out.

He closes his eyes, reaching out to the Force.   _ Who first? _

The name comes instantly.   _ Riia. _

He opens his eyes and approaches her hut, noting with reluctance that it’s one of the closest ones to the main building; she shares it with several of the other younglings and most of them need some degree of supervision.  Riia, however...Riia has always been different.

And if she survives this night, she’ll just be set apart even more.

He steals behind the larger hut, barely breathing as he edges along the wall.

Voices, and approaching signatures.

Viciously he shuts his own off, closing himself off from the Force as fast as he is able.  Something tears in him and he hurriedly shoves his hand into his mouth, biting nearly hard enough to draw blood in an attempt to stop the scream.

He’s blind.

Not in the traditional sense, but as he makes himself continue to walk without  _ It, _ he may as well be.  The voices sound fainter, now.  His head spins.

He makes it to the window of the building and peers in.

Riiya and most of the others are there.  He counts, heart sinking as he recounts and gets the same number.

_ Where is Kyra? _

The girl is adventurous, often rising earliest and being the most troublesome to find and put to bed after a long day of training.  Had she gotten up in the night?

He feels a sudden chill as the voices draw closer and closer.  He needs to get Riia out.  _ Now. _

The only door is on the other side of the building, the side he thinks the voices were coming from.  He still can’t identify them, nor does he want to.

A crack.  He turns, breath catching in his throat until he relaxes at the sight of Ben.

“The- the main building, it- it’s…” he trails off, gesturing vaguely.  Ben nods swiftly, a shadow passing over his face before he speaks.

“I know.  Luke’s gone, too.”  His voice cracks and Jacen shifts uneasily, chills running down his spine again.

“Gone?  What- what d’you mean, ‘gone?’”

“Dead.”

The lack of emotion in Ben’s voice sets off alarm bells in Jacen’s mind.   _ No.  Just- he’s just pushing it aside until we have time to deal with it.  After we get out. Then- then we can have a proper funeral for him. _

He inhales shakily.  “Alright. We need to get the kids out.”  He turns to nod to the younglings’ building.  When he glances back at the Jedi for a reaction, he notices an odd look in the teen’s eyes.  He writes it off as a glint from the distant, but still visible, fires and clears his throat.  “The Force told me we need to.” He doesn’t mention Riia, figuring that with Ben helping, they can likely get them all out.

Ben nods.  “Lead the way.”  His normally loud, brash voice is oddly quiet and soft.   _ He’s just trying to be safe; you’re the older, more experienced one here, after all. _

“Right.”  Jacen clears his throat again, tucking several loose strands of hair back as he approaches the building.  The hairs rise on the back of his neck but he shakes it off, igniting his lightsaber and carefully cutting a hole in the side of the building.  Turning the blade off, he gently nudges the now-separated circle inward.

It falls with a louder crash than he had been anticipating, and he winces.  A couple of the girls stir, but quickly still again.

He finds Riia quickly and approaches her bed, shaking her shoulder.  “Riia,” he whispers. The girl mumbles something incoherently and he shakes her again.  “Riia, get up.  _ Now. _ ”

When she wakes, it’s suddenly, her eyes snapping open as her head pops up and she nearly smacks her head into his.

“J- Jace- Master Syndulla…” she mumbles tiredly, rubbing her eye.  Quickly her gaze narrows as she takes in the situation. “Why--”

“No time,” he mutters breathlessly, hearing Ben enter behind him.  “Out of bed,  _ now. _  We h--”

He hears the snap-hiss of a lightsaber igniting behind him and whirls, igniting his own ‘saber just in time to clash with Ben’s.

“Riia,  _ go, _ ” he mutters, wincing as he Ben bears down on his blade.  With a cry, he shoves his blade up, pushing the younger teen’s blade off of his.  A quick glance back shows him Riia, eyes wide and still frozen on the bed as she watches in frozen terror.

“Riia,  _ go! _ ” he yells.  “Take the others with you!”  Riia shakes her head, clambering off of the bed and running toward one of the beds near the hole Jacen had cut into the wall.

The door to the hut flies open as Ben turns, extending a hand and freezing Riia in place.  “ _ No! _ ” Jacen screams, and the Force slams back into him like water from an opened floodgate as he raises a hand, tossing Ben against the wall.

“Kill them!” the teen yells to the people at the door.  Jacen can feel their signatures, can feel their familiarity, but he can’t bring himself to acknowledge the truth.  “Especially the girl!”

“Riia, get to the ships!” Jacen calls out, whirling and bringing his emerald blade up into a block as one of the assailants from the doorway moves to strike.  He can feel Riia lingering, unsure if she should try to help and wake the others or just get up while she still can. “ _ Go! _ ” he commands, sending a strong push of Force suggestion.

The girl exits.

He continues to fight, a whirlwind of green slashing green and blue both as he tries to protect the remaining younglings waking up, some still suspiciously asleep and others already cowering in the corners.   _ Get out now bef-- _

The first scream chills him.  He stumbles, nearly dropping his blade.  A slash that finally manages to land on his right arm draws him back to the present and he sucks in a breath, fighting the rogue Padawans to get to the children, to get them out, to protect them--

Another scream.

Pain flares and he staggers, half-lowering his blade and glancing down to confirm that he wasn’t stabbed.  Then why--?

_ Oh. _

He raises the lightsaber just in time again, but he misses the slash at his back until it’s almost too late.  He hears another scream; he’s powerless.

He keeps fighting, locks of jade-colored hair slipping out of the sloppy nerftail he’d put it up in earlier.  A shaky breath, half a second’s pause to flick sweat out of his eyes, and he’s shoved backward onto his rear with his ‘saber gone.  He crawls backward, calling his ‘saber to him from several meters away, but one of the Padawans simply grabs it instead and sneers down at him.  Another one, Kayle he thinks though he can’t make out many details in the minimal light, ignites his green ‘saber and holds the blade to his throat.

“Wait.”

Jacen allows his eyes to flick back to see Ben as much as he’s able to with the humming energy ready to cut into his jugular at a moment’s notice.  The younger teen approaches him slowly, studying him. Suddenly Jacen regrets his position on the floor, on his back and propping himself up with his elbows as he silently begs for them not to kill him.

“He’s clearly still supporting Skywalker.  We should just go ahead and kill him already, get it over with,” a Padawan he can’t see from his compromising angle says.  “Make the Supreme Leader pro--”

There’s a strangled, choked sound, and he risks a glance back at Ben to see the teen with his hand outstretched in a chokehold, fingers slowly closing around air as the choking sounds increase.  Suddenly they stop, Ben releasing his hand a moment later. There’s the sound of a body collapsing. Jacen wants to be blind and deaf to the Force again if it’ll mean he won’t hear those pained noises ever again.

“Your loyalty is to  _ me, _ first and foremost,” Ben announces loudly.  “And  _ I _ follow the Supreme Leader’s orders.  So when I say we aren’t killing him, we aren’t.  Am I clear?” Jacen’s quite possibly the only one who can detect the faint waver in the teen’s voice.

There’s murmurs of agreement and Ben nods decisively, casting another glance at Jacen but avoiding his gaze.

“We’re taking him to Supreme Leader Snoke for questioning.  If he wants to kill him, then  _ I _ will be the one to do it.”  He continues to avoid Jacen’s gaze.

He tries to push himself up further, ignoring the pain in his arm, but the ‘saber lowers further and he allows himself to fall completely to the ground.

“Restrain him and bring him to the ship.”  Ben gives the order and leaves, somehow completely trusting that the other Padawans will follow his lead.

They do.

_ Riia, get out of here…. _


	2. the one where they all terrify him.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Are you afraid to die, Master Jedi? ” she asks softly.
> 
> “No,” he answers truthfully after a long moment. “There are things worse than death.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> TW: Blood, Burns/Burning

He grunts as he’s shoved to the ground, falling hard onto his shoulder.  He starts to look up until a hand grabs the remnants of his nerftail, jerking back and taking his head with it as he cries out.  Panting, he pulls his head away and rolls onto his back, trying to push himself at least up into a sitting position until a kick knocks him back down.

He manages to roll onto his stomach in another attempt to sit up just as there’s a lightsaber at his throat again and the pain in his arm flares up.  He freezes, barely daring to breathe.

“Always thought you were better than the rest of us, didn’t you, half-breed?”  Someone yanks his nerftail again and he feels more than sees the Padawan braid come loose.  His breath hitches.

Boots come into his line of vision and he glanced up, blinking through the sweat running down his face until he can make out Kayle.  The teen stoops, studying him thoughtfully for a moment before glancing at someone behind Jacen.

“How much do you think Snoke would care if we elected to...replace Solo?”

“Not much,” someone behind Jacen mutters.  He shifts, freezing again as the blade draws closer.

“Syndulla’s about as useful to us as Solo is in that case.”  The blade hovers still closer and he sucks in a breath, trying to pull away from it.  The grip on his nerftail pulls again before quickly loosening, the sudden change nearly dropping him directly onto the ‘saber.  He eyes it warily, trying to keep his fear hidden.

“Solo has a fondness for him.”  He recognizes the voice immediately.  Hanarra, a girl slightly younger than himself.  He hears her approach and risks a glance upward to see her sneering down at him.  She nudges him with a toe, folding her arms as she continues. “We could always pass it off as Solo tried to escape with him, and we apprehended the two of them beforehand.  Brought them to Snoke to see what he would like to do; defer to his judgement. Or make him think that, at least. Little manipulation never hurt.” She shrugs easily, lifting a hand to tuck a dark strand of hair back.  “Besides, I’d like to see Solo begging. Syndulla wouldn’t be unwelcome in that regard either.”

He swallows nervously again.

“We can use him against Solo in the meantime, too.  Get him to open up a bit about his _real_ plans for us,” she continues.  “Or get him to tell us information.  Your mother _is_ close to many of the senators, is she not?”

He doesn’t answer, and suddenly there’s a stabbing pain in his injured arm as she kicks it.  She stoops, waving the lightsaber away and jerking his chin up. Thankfully, the grip on his nerftail loosens, finally releasing the hold.

“Answer me,” she says, her voice quiet but somehow more threatening than the ‘saber.  Briefly, he thinks that if he was still connected, her signature would have been the most terrifying one here, aside from maybe Ben’s.  But Ben’s has always been more...withdrawn.

From what he remembers, Hanarra’s is more similar to a wildfire.  Not the quiet strength Ben has, but a force to be reckoned with nonetheless.

And that force is staring at him with eyes that glitter darkly, daring Jacen to attempt what he’s about to do.

And naturally, Jacen does.

“No, she’s off making sure that there’s no more possibility that people like _yo--_ ”

Her blow is quick, quick enough that he isn’t able to catch the warning shift in her balance.  His head snaps to the side and he knows there’s no hope of avoiding a bloody nose. Not that that’s his main priority at the moment.

“I suggest you think _very carefully_ about what you are about to say next, _Master Syndulla._ ”  The epithet is added in a slightly higher-pitched, mocking tone, but he barely notices.  “Now, I’ll ask you again--is your mother close with the senators?”

He made a scoffing noise, voice turning slightly nasally as the blood continued and failed in its attempts to clot in his nose.  “You think I know? I haven’t had any contact with my family in _cycles._ ”

“How long?”

“Take a g--”  Though her slap this time doesn’t injure him nearly as much, it doesn’t do him any favors either.  His cheek smarts as she pulls his chin forward again, forcing him to face her.

“How. Many. Cycles.”

“The kriff if I know!  I’ve got more important things to do than count cycles.”

“You’re right.  Like, for example, _answering this question._ ”  Her voice is softer, more dangerous than it was before.  He swallows hard and tries to project the bravado he doesn’t feel.

“I told you.  I. Don’t. Know.”

Her expression becomes unreadable for a moment, and then she has her ‘saber out, holding it nearly against his skin.

“Are you afraid to die, _Master Jedi?_ ” she asks softly.  Their repeated reminders of the title he’s earned only a few months ago catch him by surprise each time.

“No,” he answers truthfully after a long moment.  His eyes flick up from the blade as he meets her gaze full-on, but this time out of his own will.  “There are things worse than death.”

Hanarra makes a sound in the back of her throat that sounds vaguely like agreement.  “I suppose you _do_ tell the truth sometimes then, half-breed.  In that case, _how long ago did you last contact her?_  If you continue to resist, I won’t hesitate to go further.”  She lets the lightsaber’s tip drift downward until it grazes his arm; if he hadn’t been carefully watching it he wouldn’t have been able to hold back the yelp that nearly escapes.  Instead he grits his teeth in pain, squeezing his eyes shut.

And then he feels it.

The lightest of touches on his mind, just barely there.  If the instigator hadn’t wanted him to sense it, he wouldn’t have.

He understands the threat well enough, allowing only a brief flash of fear to cross his face as he opens his eyes before he steels himself.

“Nobody here is strong enough to try that,” Jacen mutters through gritted teeth, the heat of the ‘saber beginning to become searing.  She gives a short laugh.

“Try it, or succeed?  Because I assure you, _Master Jedi,_ I am capable of both.”  He rolls his eyes in an attempt at dismissal, but the touch on his mind suddenly becomes hardened, actually placing pressure on it.  He squeezes his eyes shut again.

“Does it matter anyway?” he asks hoarsely, throat tight from the pain.

The ‘saber is pressed slightly more against his skin, already having burned through that section of his robe, and he can’t help the scream.

Coincidentally, the door slides open at the same time, and Hanarra casts a glance back.  Upon recognizing the figure, she quickly stands, keeping the lightsaber poised but not touching his arm.  The touch on his mind lifts and he sighs in shaky relief.

Ben.

The former Padawan approaches, taking in the sight of Jacen and Hanarra before glancing at the other Padawans.  “I gave no orders that the prisoner was to be...questioned, did I, Hanarra?”

The young woman glares spitefully at him.  “We took it upon ourselves to decide that.”

He scoffs.  “Sure.” His gaze returns to Jacen and becomes thoughtful.  “His signature. It’s...different.”

His blood runs cold.   _They’ve noticed._

“How?” Hanarra challenges, raising a brow.  “More fearful? Because I think that’s a given in this situation.”

Ben glares at her but doesn’t rise to the bait.  Instead, he shakes his head, glancing back at Jacen again.  “It’s fearful, as you said. But it’s also...brighter.” _No…._  “More...innocent.”   _Ben, no, please…._

Hanarra scoffs and crosses her arms.  “Maybe ours just got darker.”

Ben continues to study him for a moment longer before finally glancing up, gaze hooded for a moment before he shrugs.  “Maybe.” He clears his throat, changing the subject as he addresses the others in the small ship. “You are to leave him unharmed.  For now. We are delivering Syndulla to the Supreme Leader and letting _him_ decide what to do with him.  Do not touch him until then. Do I make myself clear?”

There was silence, and finally Ben nodded assertively.  “Good.” _They’ve already built telepathic bonds?  How long have they been planning this?_

How had he not seen this?  No, how had _Luke_ not seen this?

“We have another two days in hyperspace before we reach our destination.  I suggest you make yourselves comfortable, and try to avoid killing each other until we get there, please.”

Ben leaves.

And Jacen is alone in a room full of vengeful ex-Padawans once again.


	3. the one where they all land.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> He sways slightly, watching the group carefully. Vaguely he remembers the focused gazes of the Loth-cats back home as they prepared to pounce.
> 
> This time, he’s the Loth-rat, and they’re the Loth-cats.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a heads up, I'm changing the rating of this to M for future chapters (only due to violence and darker themes).
> 
> TW: Beating, Blood

Stars.

He walks slowly into the ether, footsteps causing small, luminescent ripples that he barely notices in favor of the rest of the area.  The stars blink slowly as he stops, turning in a slow circle.

A bird hoots.

He turns, sees the convor flapping its wings and resettling on the white arch above what almost looks like a portal.  It hoots again when he doesn’t move.

Slowly, he makes his way toward it.

He stops just in front of the portal.

Inside, flames rage, and he hears shouts he can’t place—he’s been here before, but he never can.

The bird hoots again before lifting off, drifting silently across the plane.  He turns slowly again, feeling no apprehension as a Loth-wolf pads silently toward him.  Dimly he realizes that it wasn’t there before.

The wolf turns and he follows it silently, the convor gliding along above them.  They reach an intersection and the convor abandons them, heading onto a different path.

At its next hoot, he turns, unsurprised to see a white Loth-cat sitting on the opposing path.  The convor hoots again, and without looking he knows it’s circling above them.

He glances back at the wolf a moment later to see it backing into shadow, though there’s nothing to cast it.  The creature sits on its haunches and stares steadily at him, eyes glowing despite the deepening darkness.

_Dume._

The wolf doesn't open its mouth, but instinctively he knows it’s speaking as the word reverberates deep in his chest.  He shakes his head slowly.

“That’s...not my name.”

The wolf cocks its head, an abruptly casual move for the creature.  A moment passes.

_Dume._

He laughs awkwardly, shaking his head again.  “That’s...I don’t know what ‘Dume’ is. _Who_ ‘Dume’ is.  But good luck trying to find it, find them, whatever it is.”

The wolf only nods slowly, and the convor screeches above the trio again.  And then the wolf speaks, in the same quiet rumble as before, only it’s more audible and it actually opens its mouth this time.

“Wake _up._ ”

He cries out as there’s a searing pain to his shin, jolting upright and trying to move his leg away at the same time.  But with his hands still in Force-restraining binders, it’s futile; it only serves to unbalance him further.

A hand pulls him up by the hair, ignoring his cry of pain as he’s then pulled into a standing position.  His leg threatens to give out.

As he glances around at the other people in the shuttle, everything comes back.  The fires. The heat of a lightsaber at his throat. The screams of the _younglings_ as—

Riia.

His eyes dart to the side, studying the person holding him up.  A hand clenches his elbow tightly and he winces, muttering a curse as he lets his weight sag away from his supporter slightly.  Surprisingly, he lets go.

Also to Jacen’s surprise, his momentum carries him onto the ground, throwing him hard onto his shoulder.  The same person kicks him in the side before pulling him to his feet again.

His nose grows heavy and he feels blood begin to trickle out.  He shakes his head to clear it.

“Look at that, even his _blood_ is a different color.”

He blinks and looks up at the figure in front of him, trying to process who it is.  Nobody comes to mind.

There’s a sigh, and then a hand roughly takes his chin and jerks it up.  A small cry of protest escapes his lips before he’s able to jerk his chin away, barely noticing as another drop of blood drips down.

“I want him coherent for questioning.”

He turns his head slightly to see Ben, or at least someone who looks like Ben, watching impassively with folded arms.

“And of _course_ his blood’s different; does he look human to you?”

“Acts like he’s one,” someone else comments, and the one holding him up lets go of him again.  He manages to pull his head up enough that his shoulder is the only part of him to take damage this time, but having his hands free would definitely help.

“We’re dropping out of hyperspace in t-minus ten minutes,” someone from behind calls.  He stiffens as a hand tries to pull him up, only to drop him when someone else intervenes.

He’s not sure why until his side explodes with pain and he grunts, curling up on himself.

“Mute now, too, Syndulla?”  There’s a few chuckles at the comment before another kick, this time to his back.  He cries out.

He endures the rest of the beating, trying to remain silent though most of his energy is focused instead on keeping his mind closed with the strength of will that’s all he has left.  But the cautious prods he’s receiving now will be nothing like what he’ll get later; he knows that.

Which is why he’s already getting more worried.

The ship shifts subtly, but it’s enough for someone who’s known how to fly almost since they could walk to be able to tell they’re no longer in hyperspace.

Jacen takes the chance to sit up slightly, breathing hard as he struggles to his feet.  Surprisingly, they let him.

He sways slightly, watching the group carefully.  Vaguely he remembers the focused gazes of the Loth-cats back home as they prepared to pounce.

This time, he’s the Loth-rat, and they’re the Loth-cats.

His eyes flick to the side as a door _whooshes_ open behind, gaze only lingering long enough to confirm that the speaker is one of the older Padawans.  His head is still throbbing too much for him to recognize who it is.

“They want to speak to you, Solo,” she calls.  Ben stalks in the direction of the cockpit abruptly, shooting Jacen a quick glance.

“Don’t call me that,” he hears the younger teen mutter as the door slides shut again.

“Who do you think Solo’s going to have interrogate him?” someone asks.

“One of us, of course,” another replies.  It takes him a moment to place the voice, but when Hanarra enters his field of vision, he takes a half step back immediately.  She grasps his chin easily enough anyway, studying him. “If he didn’t, he’d be foolish. Not that he already isn’t.”

“You seem to have a fascination with the halfbreed yourself, Hanarra.”  She whirls at the voice, and he lets out a shaky breath of relief as her fingers leave his face.  “You might as well ask for him yourself.”

Her lightsaber’s out and drawn instantly, and dimly he watches her walk across the room and point it at somebody who immediately scrambles backward.  “You think I want anything to do with a halfbreed, much less _that?_  I’d rather be the one to _kill_ him a thousand times over than _kr—_ “

The door behind slides open again and Jacen finally forces himself to turn around all the way.  Ben stalks through, glaring at Hanarra and whoever she had been threatening a moment ago.

“We’re docking now.  Make sure there’s _no risk_ of him getting out.  They’ll have some ‘troopers waiting to take him to a cell.”

Rough hands clamp down on his shoulders, and he's reminded of his hatred for the height difference between him and most of the other Academy students once again.

The ship settles to the floor of a hangar with a soft _clank_ and Jacen jolts, trying to force himself to stay conscious even in their grasp.  He can’t afford to lose awareness, not now, not when….

He barely registers the touch on his mind but recognizes it enough to glance back at Ben with poorly masked horror.  A slight twitch of his jaw muscles is the only sign the Padawan gives that only a moment ago he brushed against Jacen’s mind.

But it’s enough to make his blood run cold.

The ramp of the ship lowers with another _clang,_ and Jacen finds himself being forced off and into the hangar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Merry Chrysler Eve!!


End file.
